Abe-Singh summit set for late May

Japan and India are arranging for a late May summit between Prime Minister Shinzo Abe and his Indian counterpart, Manmohan Singh, in Tokyo, a senior Foreign Ministry official said Wednesday.

The two leaders are expected to confirm plans to improve coordination in a range of areas, including boosting security and economic ties, as China’s military and economic might in the region grows.

Abe and Singh are also likely to compare notes on a high-speed railway system planned in India and a bilateral pact for civilian nuclear energy cooperation, with Tokyo keen on exporting its shinkansen technology to the Asian giant.

The nuclear energy talks have stalled after the March 2011 tsunami sparked the nuclear crisis at the Fukushima No. 1 atomic plant.

In an interview in Tokyo last month, Indian Foreign Minister Salman Khurshid said Singh would likely visit Japan by the end of May. The Indian leader was scheduled to visit last November, but the trip was postponed after a decision by Abe’s predecessor to dissolve the Lower House for a general election in December.